In a vehicle collision with only a minor lateral overlap, the problem arises that the collision forces are not directly applied to the front bumper cross member and on to the vehicle longitudinal member. Instead, in this special accident constellation, the force is applied past the bumper cross member via the side body top shell and, in particular, via the vehicle wheel facing the crash onto the upper and lower A pillar nodes located therebehind, from which the applied collision forces are transferred farther to the vehicle door as well as to the side sills adjoining the footwell.
A front end for a vehicle according to the definition of the species is known from DE 10 2008 036 868 A1. This front end has diametrically opposed A pillars, viewed in the vehicle transverse direction. Each of these A pillars is designed as a hollow profile and has an internal sheet metal molded part and an external sheet metal molded part, which are spot-welded to each over via edge flange joints. In the area of the upper A pillar node, a hinge element for a motor vehicle door is attached to the external sheet metal molded part. To provide a structurally rigid connection, the hinge element is mounted on a bolt-like torque support, which extends through the cavity of the A pillar to the internal sheet metal molded part of the A pillar and is welded on its inside.
In the special accident constellation described above, with only a minor lateral overlap, a tensile/shear load may act, in particular, upon the flange joints between the internal and external sheet metal molded parts of the A pillar. This may cause the flange joints to break apart and the external sheet metal molded part of the A pillar to bulge sideways to the outside.
A hinge fastener on a vehicle body is known from DE 100 63 509 A1, in which a hinge element for the vehicle door is supported via a reinforcing part. The reinforcing part extends through the cavity of the A pillar and is fastened on the inside of the internal sheet metal molded part and on the inside of the external sheet metal molded part of the supporting pillar.